Samantha Fields

Senior Reporter

SHORT BIO

Samantha Fields is a senior reporter at Marketplace.

She’s particularly interested in how the economy affects people’s everyday lives, and a lot of her coverage focuses on economic inequality, housing and climate change.

She’s also reported and produced for WCAI and The GroundTruth Project, the “NPR Politics Podcast,” NPR’s midday show, “Here & Now,” Vermont Public Radio and Maine Public Radio. She got her start in journalism as a reporter for a community paper, The Wellesley Townsman, and her start in radio as an intern and freelance producer at “The Takeaway” at WNYC. She is a graduate of Wellesley College and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Latest Stories (522)

Signs of a cooling housing market: The return of contract contingencies

Jul 13, 2022
Potential buyers are again asking for home inspections and contract clauses that let them back out of a home purchase without penalty if they're unable to get a mortgage.
The contingencies allow prospective home buyers to back out of a sale.
Stephen Brashear/Getty Images for Redfin

Major credit bureaus are changing how they report unpaid medical bills

Jul 12, 2022
A new policy could soften medical debt's impact on consumers' credit reports and credit scores.
In many bases, the balance of unpaid medical debt is no more than $500. Starting next year, those balances won't be on credit reports.
Getty Images

Hot jobs market is showing some cool spots, staffing agencies say

Jul 7, 2022
There are still almost two jobs open for every person looking for work, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported this week.
In some industries, the job market is showing signs of cooling. In others, the market is still hot.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

School lunches aren't free to everyone anymore. Some advocates think they should be.

Jun 30, 2022
There are a lot of benefits to making school lunch and other social benefits more universal. But, yes, it's expensive to do.
Despite the popularity of universal free lunches during the pandemic, lawmakers allowed the program to expire.
Jon Cherry/Getty Images

American is ending service at 4 airports as airlines scramble to hire staff

Jun 22, 2022
The carrier is canceling regional routes in Ohio, New York and Iowa. Losing an airline can be tough on a city and its economy.
Early in the pandemic, airlines offered pilots early retirement, "and now they're finding themselves short-staffed," said David Slotnick of The Points Guy website.
Daniel Slim/AFP via Getty Images

The housing market is finally starting to cool off

Jun 16, 2022
Mortgage rates are up. Realtors are being laid off.
High mortgage rates means reduces the pool of potential homebuyers. Fewer buyers could mean houses are on the market longer, which could prompt sellers to reduce prices.
Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images

Bear markets are anxious times for many nonprofits

Jun 16, 2022
But a dip in the summer isn't as bad for donations as a dip in December.
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on June 14, 2022 in New York City.
Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Extreme heat is becoming more common. Should tenants have a right to air conditioning?

Jun 14, 2022
There are many more laws and programs to help low-income people stay warm in the winter than cool in the summer.
Above, temperatures reached 114º F in of El Centro, California on June 12. Much of the South and West have been grappling with a heat wave, underscoring how air conditioning is becoming increasingly necessary.
Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images

To convince more drivers to go electric, the Biden administration wants chargers that work for all EVs

Jun 9, 2022
Currently, there is no standard charging infrastructure. Creating a universal charger could be key to getting more people to go electric.
The push toward electrification is on. But what does that mean for the US?
Mario Tama/Getty Images
ridvan_celik via Getty Images